⚠️Trigger warning ⚠️ Termination of pregnancy topic. This week you will hear a story of a young lady when she found herself in a difficult situation not knowing what to do. Some people may find this episode upsetting as we talk about abortion or induced miscarriage as I prefer to call it. On this podcast we talk about baby loss from every perspective with no judgment, because whether we had a choice or not the impact is real. Please listen as this young lady opens up and lets us in, as she talks about having to make that difficult decision and the journey she went on. In this episode you will hear the raw honest truth of what it was like to go through a termination of pregnancy. Although there was an element of choice in there she still grieved for her baby. The world is not black and white, there are grey areas in between and this is definitely one of those stories. Listen as we talk about the physical and emotional impact an induced miscarriage can have and the options available. I want to thank this young lady for allowing herself to be so vulnerable.I know it took a lot of courage for her to share her story. And I hope you will all take something away from this as I think it is a power story. There are a lot of us who have found ourselves in similar situations not knowing what to do. I hope this episode can help you make a better informed decision. So please join us …..

This week you will hear Barry’s story. Barry talks for the first time about his son Mason who was diagnosed with peroxisome biogenesis disorders (PBD), Zellweger Syndrome at just four months old, when he was only given a year to live. Listen as Barry talks about his journey caring for his son and being a dad for the first time. You will hear how determined Barry was to give his son the best quality of life by thinking outside of the box and challenging where he felt necessary. And what a fantastic job he did. Mason managed to live until he was two and a half years old thanks to the care and determination of his parents. Barry is a proud dad and he talks about the struggles and the highs and lows of his journey caring for his son and what life was like after. Even after losing his son Barry continued to work and support others. It was a privilege to hear his story and hear the perspective of the dad in this episode. Barry is an amazing father and an inspiration to all.

This week you will hear Steffi’s story! Steffi is a mum of three, with two angel babies and one rainbow baby. Listen as Steffi’s takes us on her journey, which started when she was just 11 years old. When she was diagnosed with two different types of cancer. Steffi was told she would be infertile and when the time came she would have to find alternative routes to have a baby. Steffi has been through so much. Listen as she talks about IVF and surrogacy and the loss of her two beautiful babies Ayla and Marley. Steffi has her own charity The Hope and Faith Foundation. Where she is working hard to help other bereaved families. You will hear how Steffi has had to over come so many hurdles and yet she still she finds time to give back. Steffi has so much courage she is inspiring. She is holding a charity ball for her local hospital to raise money to support bereaved parents. If you’d like to contact Steffi or check out her charity details are below https://instagram.com/steffigoodwin?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== https://www.facebook.com/thehopeandfaithfoundationbedford

This week you will hear part 2 of Erica’s story. Erica lost her baby 40 years ago on the 29th May, baby Shane sadly passed away. Erica is a mum of 4 and a grandmother. Listen as Erica takes us on her journey of the last 40 years and what that looks like for her. You will hear her talk about her pregnancy with her rainbow baby and the amazing work Erica has done since. Erica is an experienced counsellor and a long time advocate of baby loss awareness and support. She has worked for a number of charities including Sands, helping support bereaved families. Erica has worked with the writers of Eastenders and Coronation street on their storylines around baby loss as well as supporting a number of authors with their books. Erica has contributed so much to our community, I am in awe of her. I feel very lucky to have met her. She has inspired me so much and I imagine anyone who meets her! Now I am sharing her story with you. So please join us.

This week you will hear Erica’s story. Erica lost her baby 40 years ago today 29th May, baby Shane sadly passed away. Listen as Erica takes us on her journey of the last 40 years and what that looks like for her. Erica is a mum of 4 and a grandmother. Listen as she talks about baby loss from both perspectives in the next two episodes . Erica is also an experienced counsellor and a long time advocate of baby loss awareness and support. She has worked for a number of charities including sands helping support bereaved families. Erica has worked with the writers of Eastenders and Coronation street on their storyline around baby loss as well as supporting a number of authors with their books. Erica has contributed so much to our community I am in awe of her. I feel very lucky to have met her and she has inspired me so much and I imaging anyone who meets her! Now I am sharing her story with you. So please join us.

This week you will hear Jess’s story. Listen as Jess tells us what it was like to loose her babies. Jess opens up to us and takes us on her journey. You will hear how Jess’s parents made the difficult decision on her behalf to have a medical termination when she was just a teenager and since then Jess has had experiences ranging from miscarriages,still birth and neonatal deaths. This is a woman who has lost so much but still finds the time and space in her heart to help others. You will hear how Jess has devoted herself to help other women who have similar experiences. She has done such a good job that this year she has been awarded a Citizenship Award for all the hard work she has done. You will hear how Jess has found her purpose and is actively doing great work in her community. Email: Jess@bromorgannwgbabyloss.net /Tara@bromorgannwgbabyloss.net Facebook: Bro Morgannwg Baby Loss Support Group

This week you will hear Alicia Burnett’s story. Alicia is the co founder of black baby loss awareness week. The first ever black baby loss awareness week is this week 15- 19th May 2023 and it’s only fitting that we hear Alicia’s story. Listen as Alicia talks about her passion for what she does and why she does it. Baby loss is highest amongst people of colour and yet we are the least likely to access support. Alicia has her own lived experience of what it is like to lose a baby when she lost her son in 2018 and now she supports other families that look like her. Alicia is a force to be reckoned with. She is on a mission to improve the quality of care for women of colour and their babies. I for one feel honoured to have met her and listened to her story. Alicia is a committed advocate of midwifery and was invited onto the ITV Lunchtime News to speak about her decision to become a midwife, and why college leavers should consider a career in midwifery. She was the first student Editor-in-Chief of The Student Midwife journal, and recently re-joined the journal as an editorial board member. She is also in the process of writing her first academic book. She has co-authored articles in the Nursing Standard, Midwifery and Nurse Education Today, and she penned the article ‘Racism Matters 6. This Hurts Us Much More Than it Hurts You: The Lived Experiences of Black, Asian and Multi-Racial Student Midwives’ for The Practising Midwife. Alicia has also been featured in the RCM's Midwives magazine and written blog posts for the Council of Deans of Health, the Student Leadership Programme and All4Maternity. You can support black baby awareness week using the links below. https://instagram.com/blackbabylossawareness?igshid=ZWQyN2ExYTkwZQ== https://instagram.com/midwife_alicia?igshid=ZWQyN2ExYTkwZQ==

Happy Birthday Zion 💙

This week you will hear part 2 of Jan’s story. Listen as Jan continues to take us on her journey of what it was like to lose her son after a number of miscarriages and years of trying. You will hear how Jan was determined to use her own grief to help others. Jan use to work for a charity called Sands for around 10 years and now she works for a charity called Chums https://chums.uk.com Over the years she has done so much to help others, including myself and continues to do so much. If you would like to help support chums please visit the website. It’s my privilege to share Jan’s story with you.

This week you will hear Jan’s story. Listen as Jan tells her story of what it was like to lose her son after a number of miscarriages and years of trying. You will hear how Jan was determined to use her own grief to help others. Jan use to work for a charity called Sands for around 10 years and now she works for a charity called Chums https://chums.uk.com Over the years she has done so much to help others, including myself and continues to do so. If you would like to help support chums please visit the website. It’s my privilege to share Jan’s story with you. So please join us.

Malin Anderson is an author, a motivational speaker and an advocate for a number of good causes including mental health, body image and women’s rights. As well as baby loss. Some of you may also know her from love island. Listen as Malin talks about the complications she experienced in her first pregnancy whilst in an abusive relationship. Malin takes us on her journey from the loss of her daughter to the birth of her rainbow baby and what that was like for her. Listen as Malin talks about her struggles and how she has overcome them.

Cara is a mum of 4 she has 3 beautiful children with her and 1 angel baby. *warning this episode shares some graphic details that might upset some listeners* Listen this week as Cara tells her story! She was just 17 years old when her first born son was still born. Cara lost her son over 20 years ago and she went on to have 3 more beautiful children. Listen as Cara tells us about her journey and how much she has over come. This is really an inspirational story. Cara give us her raw honest truth of her experience and life journey.

Cara is a mum of 4! She has 3 beautiful children with her and 1 angel baby. Listen this week as Cara tells her story! She was just 17 years old when her first born son was still born. Cara lost her son over 20 years ago and she went on to have 3 more beautiful children. Listen as Cara tells us about her journey and how much she has over come. This is really an inspirational story. Cara give us her raw honest truth of her experience and life journey.

Call the midwife! Listen to Grace tells us what it is like from a midwife’s point of view. Grace is a mum, a singer, a midwife and a woman. Listen as Grace tells us about her experiences as a midwife and why she entered into this profession. We talk about the impacts on women of colour and we talk about the differences between areas. It is so refreshing to listen to Grace talk about the wonderful work she does and the passion she has. In Grace’s area they are trying to find the right balance on how to support families during pregnancy. Listen as Grace tells us about her experience supporting a family when they lost their baby and what that was like for Grace, a midwife’s perspective. Grace is so passionate about her work and equality and diversity, during lockdown Grace started her own podcast called brown muma brown me. Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) women are reported to be have poorer outcomes during pregnancy, childbirth and within 6weeks of giving birth. This includes being more likely to die than their white counterparts. Brown Mama Brown Me is a podcast exploring the topic and seeks to continue the conversation in order to improve maternity care and the outcomes for BAME women in the UK https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/brown-mama-brown-me/id1512677691?i=1000474167078

Call the midwife! Listen to Grace tells us what it is like from a midwife’s point of view. Grace is a mum, a singer, a midwife and a woman. Listen as Grace tells us about her experiences as a midwife and why she entered into this profession. We talk about the impacts on women of colour and we talk about the differences between areas. It is so refreshing to listen to Grace talk about the wonderful work she does and the passion she has. In Grace’s area they are trying to find the right balance on how to support families during pregnancy. Listen as Grace tells us about her experience supporting a family when they lost their baby and what that was like for Grace, a midwife’s perspective. Grace is so passionate about her work and equality and diversity, during lockdown Grace started her own podcast called brown muma brown me. Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) women are reported to be have poorer outcomes during pregnancy, childbirth and within 6weeks of giving birth. This includes being more likely to die than their white counterparts. Brown Mama Brown Me is a podcast exploring the topic and seeks to continue the conversation in order to improve maternity care and the outcomes for BAME women in the UK https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/brown-mama-brown-me/id1512677691?i=1000474167078

Listen as my dear friend Lily tells her story. She talks honestly and openly about her journey as a mother. Listen as Lily talks about the complications in both of her pregnancies and the miscarriage she experienced in between them. Lily opens up her heart and gives us her honest truth. In this second part Lily talks about her pregnancy after having a miscarriage and the complications she experienced. Listen as Lily tells us what it was like and the impact to her son. Listen as Lily fills us in on the last part of her journey.

Listen as my dear friend Lily tells her story. She talks honestly and openly about her journey as a mother. Listen as Lily talks about the complications in both of her pregnancies and the miscarriage she experienced in between them. Lily opens up her heart and gives us her honest truth. In this first part Lily talks about having an operation to remove her ovary during her first pregnancy and the miscarriage she experienced later on in life. She talks about her thought process through this and the challenges to her and her family. But through everything Lily remains positive and continues to always do her best.

Part 2 of 2. Safia is a mum of two and an experienced equity and inclusion practitioner and facilitator. Her work is guided by principles of collaboration, compassion and curiosity. With a history of positive agitation and disruption. Safia is committed to working alongside people with lived experience of oppression and disadvantage, to challenge the structures that maintain difference and Otherness. When Safia was only 15 weeks pregnant, she lost her baby after being told her baby had *Edwards’ Syndrome. In this episode listen as Safia tells us about her experience. Walking us through her journey and what that was like for her at the time. Safia highlights how important it is to use a trauma informed approach and what a difference that can make when supporting someone who has experienced baby loss. * Babies with Edwards’ syndrome have more of chromosome 18 in some or all of the cells in their body. It is also known as Trisomy 18. In the UK, around 3 in every 10,000 births are affected by Edwards’ syndrome. Most cases result from a random change in the egg or sperm in healthy parents. This change is not caused by anything the parents did before or during pregnancy.

Safia is a mum of two and an experienced equity and inclusion practitioner and facilitator. Her work is guided by principles of collaboration, compassion and curiosity. With a history of positive agitation and disruption. Safia is committed to working alongside people with lived experience of oppression and disadvantage, to challenge the structures that maintain difference and Otherness. When Safia was only 15 weeks pregnant, she lost her baby after being told her baby had *Edwards’ Syndrome. In this episode listen as Safia tells us about her experience. Walking us through her journey and what that was like for her at the time. Safia highlights how important it is to use a trauma informed approach and what a difference that can make when supporting someone who has experienced baby loss. * Babies with Edwards’ syndrome have more of chromosome 18 in some or all of the cells in their body. It is also known as Trisomy 18. In the UK, around 3 in every 10,000 births are affected by Edwards’ syndrome. Most cases result from a random change in the egg or sperm in healthy parents. This change is not caused by anything the parents did before or during pregnancy.

Part 2. Dawn Morton-Young a mum of four as well as a successful business woman. She started as Louisa’s co-host but unfortunately Dawn will only feature in the first few episodes as she has now started her own podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-diverse-leaders-conversation-podcast/id1646228046   In these episodes Dawn tells her story from the start. She has four beautiful girls and she walks us through her birth stories. Listen as Dawn goes into detail about her traumatic birth with her last daughter, giving birth to her on the landing. We hear about the lasting effects this had on her and her daughter. Dawn opens up and talks honestly about her daughter’s learning disabilities and the journey they have been on to get the right diagnosis and support. She also talks about the miscarriage of her son. We touch on so many aspects and highlight common themes that women of colour experience and how to overcome some of these experiences. Dawn is truly inspirational in the work she has done and continues to do.